Thinking Out Loud #2

Hey there!  How is your week going?  I wanted to get another recap of our Dubai trip up today, but that just didn't happen last night (see #1 below for why!).  For now, I just feel like sharing some random thoughts with you.  I'll be linking up with Amanda for her Thursday tradition of Thinking Out Loud!

Thanks, Amanda, for the link-up!  Head over to her blog, Running with Spoons, to see what other bloggers are thinking today!

1.  I have just been so OFF this week!  I think starting the week out with a lack of sleep on Sunday night (thank you Super Bowl) and a jam-packed Monday just set me back.

How I spent the Super Bowl

All the exhaustion is really starting to hit me, and it's no fun!  At least it's Thursday, so we're close to the weekend!

2. My evaluation for work was yesterday.  I gave a professional development session at one of my schools, and everything went really well!  Hooray, just one less thing I have to worry about before I go on leave :)

3. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw that I tried the limited batch Chobani Grape flavor.

Now, I LOVE all things grape-flavored, so this was really good to me!  I has just the right amount of flavor without being too much.  I need to get my hands on some more!  Yumm!

4.  Someone else has been a little off this week.

I think she's absolutely adorable here though, as always :)

I feel so bad that she has to stay in the cage all day now with me working and Joe at his all-day internship.  My next door neighbor will come over and let her out every now and then, but poor Tequila just isn't getting as much exercise as she did in the past.  She's used to only being in there for 5 hours at the longest and having Joe to play with for the rest of the time I'm gone. I'm working on finding a solution to this, because I don't want the poor thing to get depressed or feel neglected!

5.  I tried a new cereal this week and it was great!

I saw this flavor of Special K's Protein cereal as I was walking down the cereal aisle and had to pick up a box.  It kind of tastes like Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but it has to be healthier, right?  I'm really happy with this find and plan to get more in the future!

6. Pablo has finally started to be more social lately.

He went through a few weeks where he would come in, go sit in one of our kitchen chairs, and not move until he was hungry.  Well, now he's cuddling on the couch, as well as getting in bed with us at night again.  It makes me happy!

7.  I've started to notice that I just cannot walk as fast as I used to without getting incredibly out of breath.  Baby Fish is really squishing my lungs!  I guess this is a sign that I need to slow down and take it easy these last two months.  Unfortunately, that's really hard for me to do, as I like to keep busy.  Hopefully I'll learn to take care of myself when needed over these next two months!

8.  Speaking of...I have a 5K scheduled for Saturday.  This should be interesting, considering walking has been challenging lately!  I'm going in to the race on Saturday with the idea of just to finish upright, so I'll do what I need to do in order to meet that goal.

All right, y'all, those are about all the random thoughts I have for today!  Have a great Thursday!

Question for you: What's a random thought you are having today?

Pregnancy Update: 32 Weeks

Good morning, y'all!  How is everyone's week going?  I am just exhausted this week, which probably has something to do with the Super Bowl on Sunday.  Then, I just had to stay up and watch the Bachelor last night, so I'm still pretty sleepy!  Maybe tonight I'll catch up on some sleep.

Let's dive right on in to the normal Tuesday post: a pregnancy update!  I really can't believe that we are less than 2 months away from Baby Fish's arrival--CRAZY how fast time has gone by!

Pregnancy Update: 32 Weeks

How far along? 32 weeks (and two days)

Baby Bump progress: taken a day later than I normally do, but that's because the one Joe took on Sunday was really blurry (plus, I love this outfit!!)

Baby's Size? a squash!  Weighs 2.5-3.5 pounds and measures about 16 inches in length

What's happening this week?  

• Baby Fish is getting ready for descent, probably in the head-down position
• Feeling cramped!  Baby Fish continues to grow, so there's a little less room in there

Total weight gain/loss: 17.2 pounds total as of the last appointment three weeks ago (I go to the doctor today and will update this number when I get back)

Stretch marks? no new ones!  I have gotten lax with the cocoa butter though--I need to get on that!

Sleep: still waking up a few times in the middle of the night, but I'm able to change positions and get back to sleep.  I'm sleeping better than I thought, though, thanks to tracking my sleep on my FitBit!  

I thought I was awake many more times during the night and for longer, but overall, I'm getting more time asleep than I expected.

Best moment this week: After having a pretty busy week, it was nice to have a relaxing weekend at home.  We did get some stuff done and do some social things, but for the most part, we took it easy.  I particularly enjoyed our walk on the beach on Sunday morning!  Please excuse the no-makeup selfie.

So sad Seattle lost the Super Bowl by the way :(  Poor Russell Wilson (fellow RVA native)

Miss anything?: fitting in to my normal clothes, being able to reach down comfortably, breathing deeply, being able to get up from a low-sitting chair/my car easily

Movement: Baby Fish is a mover for sure!  It's really weird to see my stomach reacting to his/her movements.  I've even been able to feel a limb/body part when there's pressure on certain parts of my stomach.  It's kind of weird, but kind of cool, too!  I have not seen a limb poke out or move across my stomach, though.  I'm very thankful for that, because that kind of creeps me out!

Food cravings: Nothing specific, but once I get a certain taste in my mouth or a thought of eating something, I HAVE to have it.  Example: driving home from Orlando on Thursday, i got the taste for pizza, which is not normally something that I like.  So, naturally, I had to order a pizza for dinner!  Let me tell you, it was delicious :)

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope!  Again, I'm so thankful that I've had an easy go in that department, and I hope it continues!

Gender: We'll find out when Baby Fish is born :)

Labor Signs: I believe I've had a few Braxton Hicks contractions ("fake" contractions-it feels like my stomach is tightening and is a little uncomfortable), but no real labor signs!

Symptoms: 

• A few Braxton-Hicks contractions
• Shortness of breath-my lungs are getting cramped
• Swollen ankles, especially after sitting/driving for long periods of time
• Forgetful and easily agitated

Belly Button in or out? still in, but it's flattening out (and pretty weird!)

Wedding rings on or off? on!

Happy or Moody?: this has actually been a fairly happy week, but when something bothers me, I've noticed I'm more vocal about it now.  See this week's funny moment for an example :)

Funny moments this week: On Thursday, Joe and I had dinner with a few of his friends.  I left a little earlier than they did, and Joe told me he'd pick up ice cream for me on the way home.  When he got home, his friend told me that Joe forgot the ice cream.  I got so mad, jumped up, slammed my phone in to my purse, and was about to walk out when they both quickly told me they were just kidding!  I calmed down pretty fast, but it was kind of funny to see their reactions when I so quickly transitioned into that anger!  I was a little surprised, myself!  Morale of the story: don't tell a pregnant lady you didn't pick up something to satisfy her cravings :)

Looking forward to: getting more things together to Baby Fish.  It's been really exciting when packages arrive, like this travel system stroller from my aunt, uncle, and grandparents!  How generous!!

There's a lot to be done around the house to make room for our third family member, and I'm looking forward to making that happen over the next few weeks!

Exercise this week 

I really did not do too well on the exercise front this week.  I was driving back and forth from Orlando Wednesday-Saturday for a workshop, and I was just exhausted.  

Tuesday-short walk with Tequila

Wednesday-rest day

Thursday-rest day

Friday-rest day

Saturday-rest day

Sunday-about 2 mile walk on the beach with Joe

Monday-about a mile walk with Tequila

I'm hoping that this week will be a better week in this regard!  Back to scheduling things in my planner to make sure it happens :)

Question for you: What do you do to make sure you get in your workouts during the week?  For the moms out there: what are some things that I really HAVE to do before the baby comes, and what can wait until afterward (things to buy, things to have ready, etc.)?

SSMT January Verses and Reflections

As one of my goals for 2015, I'm challenging myself to memorize 24 verses of Scripture this year through the Living Proof Ministries blog.   Every other year, they have the Siesta Scripture Memory Team (SSMT for short), where women from all over the country (and world, probably) choose a new verse of Scripture to memorize on the 1st and 15th of each month.

Well, I'm now on to memorizing verse 3, and so far I'm having no trouble at all memorizing my verses! I thought it'd be cool each month to tell you which verses I memorized.  I also wanted to reflect on why I chose that verse and how it has helped me during that time.

By the way, if you're interested, you can join the SSMT at any time!  You can always participate on your own, but if you want to join in with the community, just read the instructions here.

Verse #1: Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

"Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways, submit to Him and He will make your paths straight"

As the year turned to 2015 and I began thinking about all of the changes that will come with this year (hello, becoming parents in a few short months!), the first part of this verse came into my head.  I'd heard it before but didn't know the whole verse.  I looked it up and decided it was the perfect verse to start memorizing and have with me every day of this year (and my life!).

Well, I feel like God confirmed for me that this was the right verse to start with when it was used in the sermon on the first Sunday of January.  When I heard it quoted in the sermon, I'm pretty sure that I laughed out loud.  I couldn't help it; when I hear God speaking to me or confirming something that I thought He was saying to me, it just makes me happy!

Verse #2: Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

"So do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you,

I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

Can you see the theme of kinds of verses I felt like I needed to start with?  This time, I used the search feature on BibleGateway.com to look up the word "help."  I really wanted a verse to memorize that would again help me when I was feeling stressed and overwhelmed.

Throughout this month, I've been repeating these verses in my head when things get stressful or overwhelming.  It reminds me to take a step back, think about if I can control the situation or not, and pray about it regardless.  I have found such relief and comfort in the Lord when doing this!  Here's an example:

Last Friday, Joe and I dropped his car off to get serviced before I went to work.  I got a text about an hour before I came home from him saying "We need to talk about the Buick :\"  Naturally, I immediately thought that he got news that his car was completely dead.  I went in to freak-out mode in my mind, worrying about where the money would come from for a down payment and a new car and a baby and...  

Then Proverbs 3:5-6 came in to my mind, as did Isaiah 41:10.  I stopped, prayed about it, gave my worry to God, asked for His peace, and to trust Him.  And guess what?  There were a few repairs that needed to occur, and he wanted to ask if I thought the price was worth the investment.

Can we talk about relief?!?!  The money spent on the repairs (and we were able to negotiate the price a little, too) was far less than buying a new car!  And, really, what good would it have been for me to worry about it the whole way home?  Praise God for teaching me to trust Him and comfort me when I needed it.

Question for you: What's something that you use to calm down in times of stress?

Friday Five: Favorite Indoor Workouts

Good morning everyone!  So sorry that I disappeared the last few days.  I've been commuting back and forth to Orlando for a workshop, and let me tell you, I am SO THANKFUL I do not have to do that every day!  At least this morning there was a beautiful sunrise to welcome me in to the city (and minimal traffic!).

Today, I'm linking up with Courtney, Cynthia, and Mar for Friday Five!  Today's topic is favorite indoor workouts.

It's that time of year where many of us across the country can't get outside to run or workout like we normally do in the warmer seasons.  While I do have the luxury of still being able to enjoy outdoor workout (thank you, Florida "winter"), I still enjoy working out indoors a fair amount.  So, let's see what some of those workouts are!

1. BodyPUMP

This should come as no surprise that BodyPUMP is my favorite indoor workout!  I love group exercise classes for the motivation and the level of work outs I always get.  I particularly love BodyPUMP

2. TV Show/Commercial Workouts

I spend a fair amount of time in the evenings watching TV, like the Bachelor/Bachelorette and Dancing with the Stars.  To make the most of that time, I sometimes enjoy completing a workout that goes along with the TV show.  Other times, I will do a short circuit during commercial breaks to make that time go by and get in quick bursts of exercise!  Some of the workouts I've shared on the blog:
TV Commercial Workout
Dancing with the Stars Workout
Bachelor Women Tell All Workout

3. Treadmill Speed Workouts

Did I really just say that treadmill workouts are one of my favorites?  Yes, yes I did.  I LOVE using the treadmill for speed work, and during the winter, this just seems like it makes sense.  I can run comfortably indoors AND get in my speed work.  Sounds good to me!  Here's one of my favorite treadmill workouts.  Also, if you think the treadmill is just the worst thing ever, check out these tips for avoiding the dread of the treadmill!

4. Workout DVDs

When it's cold out, the last thing I want to do is leave my house!  Workout DVDs are a great way to still get in some exercise but not have to go anywhere to do so.  I love this Beach Babe Tone It Up DVD and will pull it out every now then.


5. Bikram Yoga
I haven't been able to complete this workout since the summer, but bikram yoga is a great indoor workout!  The heat is perfect for the winter time (until you walk outside, of course), and I always feel like I really worked hard afterward, but relaxed at the same time.  If you've never tried bikram yoga before, I suggest trying a class out!  Be sure to drink lots of water beforehand!

Lately, I've only been doing BodyPUMP of these five favorite indoor workouts, but writing this post made me want to pick some of these back up!  Hopefully I can find one of these workouts that'll work for me in my current pregnant state.

Hope y'all have a great weekend!!  I'll try not to be as absent from the blog next week :)

Question for you: What is your favorite indoor workout?